Labyrnith
by TrulyMadHatter
Summary: It's 10 years into the future, and Lissa and Rose are at court, living the lives they'd always planned. Zanna is the English guardian sent as extra protection for Lissa. But as her time at court unwinds, she finds that all is not as it seems...
1. Chapter 1

**A/N Okay, this is a story I've had on my mind for a while. Basically, it features a whole cast of new characters, but the rest of the gang will also feature heavily. It's set about ten years into the future, and at the moment there's a queen called Yelena, and Lissa is heir apparent. Rose and Dimitri have made up, because I'm strongly R/D and can't live with the idea of them not together. I love Adrian, I do, but I love Dimitri more! The main character is Zanna, and she's been sent to guard Lissa, who's pregnant (she's with Christian), and needs extra protection.**

**Disclaimer: No, I do not own Vampire Academy. Sniff.**

**We'll go from there…**

**Preface**

No, it wasn't fair. I'd never been any trouble; I'd never done anything to her personally. It hurt. It hurt to think that I wasn't good enough, that her cruel words actually meant something in the Moroi world. He loved me; I knew he did, but to have been brushed aside like that... Well, it hurt. Alex had told me to take the fact that she said I was a good Guardian, and leave it at that. But I couldn't. Her saying I was worthless and unwanted just confirmed all the fears I'd had from childhood. That nobody loved me, that I was just there and had no real purpose.

And it didn't matter what Alex and Dom said. In the end they would forget me. Alex would end up marrying some stuck up royal and use me as his "something on the side". I held back the tears and put the letter down. It would do me no good to cry over someone else's views. I wouldn't let it get that far. I had far more self respect – I wasn't a blood whore, I never had been.

Yelena was a bitch. There was no two ways about it. She discriminated against everyone. She hated me for daring to love a Moroi. She detested my mother for having had a serious relationship with my father, and she couldn't stand my father, simply because he didn't want to treat the dhampirs as a lower class . It sucked, majorly, but I wouldn't let it get to me. I was one of the best goddamned Guardians in the world, and even the Queen admitted it. I would serve my "penance", and I would come back to my lover and my friends and I would live my life the way I wanted to.

I hated it all. Why couldn't anyone leave it all alone? Why was it my life they had to meddle in? I'd given up the life I'd desperately wanted, given up all my dreams. I'd never wanted the restrictive life of a Guardian. I had too selfish a nature to ever selflessly give up my life for some I didn't know, or care about. I didn't want to die for someone who didn't love me. But at the same time, I didn't want to completely immerse myself in human life. I wanted to be able to live the same life I'd always had, and have my family and friends with me. It had been the cry of my childhood "It's not fair". My mother had explained to me that no, it wasn't fair, but we dhampirs had to live with that, and cope with it as best we could. I didn't get that. Why did we have to live second class lives, and give ourselves up for the Moroi?

And that was why Yelena hated me, I guess. I refused to conform. I had a relationship with the Moroi I guarded. Okay, fine, I'll admit it, he initiated it, which is unusual for him as he's much quieter than me. But the sex was awesome, I loved him and the Queen couldn't do anything about that! Just because she's a frigid old bitch...

Love is something that cannot be forced, it comes when you least expect it. And it can be so different for many people. It can take you over like fire, or it can cover like you like an old, comfortable blanket. For me, it was both ways. There were times when I loved him so much that the passion felt like fire, and times when I was down and he was just there. It made me happy. And that was something I hadn't had much of in my life. There weren't many times in my life I'd been truly happy. But he made me laugh, he made me smile. He could make me giggle hysterically and make me melt with one look. It was scary, having someone with that much control over me.

I'd never expected love to come from him. I'd never expected it to be all encompassing. I'd never thought I'd care so much about him. And now I was going to lose him.

"It's only for a year." He smiled, the easy grin that came so easily to him when he was relaxed. "You'll be back before you know it. And, by all accounts, the Princess is supposed to be lovely, and her Guardian." He looked at me. "But that's not what's really getting you down, is it?"

He knew, of course he knew. He just understood me that much. His face softened. "Oh, sweetheart, you don't think what the letter said is true, do you?" I looked down, and put his finger on my chin, slowly moving my face up. "You are not nothing to me, understand? You mean so much to me it's indescribable. You know that, right?"

I laugh, shakily. "What, I'm not allowed a moment of doubt? It just got to me, that's all. I know you love me." I shook my head. I was trying to brush him away again. I couldn't accept that he loved me so completely; I was always making jokes to stop us getting too sentimental. Well not this time. I wasn't going to see him for a year. I needed to give him this much. "You know I love you too. Remember that, okay. Because I'm going to miss you, and I want to make sure you're thinking of me when your parents are foisting gorgeous women on you! I know it's going to be hard for you."

He chuckled. "Don't worry, I'm sure Dom and Ariana will have my back." His face turned serious. "I could come with you. I mean, I'm sure I can-" I put a finger against his mouth, effectively shutting him up.

"Don't be silly. You know you can't. You'll just have to settle for emailing and phone calls. Now help me pack."

"I'll visit you! I'll make sure I will!" he sounded like a little boy. It still wasn't enough. That letter had shaken me, uprooted my conviction that yes, he did love me. But I would recover from it, and I would come back to him.

**A/N Sorry about the insanely long ANs! So what d'you think? Tell me in a review! But no flames please-I'm under enough stress as it is…**

**Love, **

**The Hatter**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N Hello! I'm back! Here we are with the first chapter. Sorry it's so short, but we're only getting started.**

**Disclaimer: Nope, I do not own Vampire Academy. I own my characters, but that's it. I'm sad now.**

I shuffled the cards, making sure they were completely mixed up. Swallowing nervously, I cut the deck, choosing the three cards that called to me. I loved and hated reading the Tarot. On the one hand it was invigorating to 'know' the future, but on the other hand; it meant that there were no surprises. That was the trouble with my…_abilities_ – they were a help and a hindrance.

Did I really want to know the future? Well, I couldn't go back now, and anyway, the Tarot weren't a clear representation of the facts. It just kind of gave you a broad, albeit confusing, overview of what could happen. But I always ended up with the exact future.

I spread the cards on the floor in front of me. Taking a deep breath in, I looked down. My eyes widened in shock. They all spelled out big changes in my life and…and…danger. Though for me, or someone else, I didn't know. I probed my mind, sinking into a meditative state.

A child…A dangerous group…Power…New people… The different images came to the forefront of my mind. I was incredibly surprised. I didn't usually get such a strange and comprehensive reading. But the strangest thing was that all these different things didn't seem to apply to my life per say, it was as if I was going to get tangled up in some weird business. Oh no…

I suppose I'm a…witch, but that analogy isn't quite correct. It's not like I can shoot sparks out of my hands or anything. I just…_know_ things. Things that I shouldn't know, that have no relation to my life at all. For instance, I could know your partner's cheating on you, yet not even know your name. I can read the Tarot with scary accuracy, as I said before. I know if Strigoi will attack, usually. But it's not perfect-I'm not right all the time. But I am most of the time. And…I dream the future.

And I hate being like this.

How would you like being a freak of nature? How would you like knowing that the person sitting next to you on the train is going to die in three months? How would you like your life being dictated by the Moroi, just because you're 'special'? And how would you like having to give up your life for a stranger?

Welcome to my world. It sucks.

I'd never really wanted to be a Guardian, it was true. Being a Guardian hadn't been my first choice, but I'd seen no other viable option. I'd wanted to be a university professor – teaching the subject of my degree. Myths and Legends were what I'd specialised in, particularly ones about Vampires and other mythical creatures. It fascinated me, especially as I could see what humans had gotten right and wrong about us.

But it wasn't to be. I had the degree, all right, but I would need more experience. I had the contacts to do that, but how could I leave the Moroi world without being ostracised? I couldn't, and that was the point. I'd not wanted to be a blood whore, effectively selling off my body, and ending up with children with no father. Nor had I wanted my mother's complacent life. Yes, she was comfortable, and didn't have to worry about money or anything. She was still firmly integrated into our world, but she wasn't respected, and she got a lot of shit for that.

My mother was wonderful, and I thought she was great – I just didn't want that kind of half life, with no partner and no job that interested me. I couldn't fully submit to a human life, not when I'd miss my friends. I would have to keep my identity a secret, too, making all serious relationships near impossible. So there was no middle ground. Being a Guardian gave me some independence, and kept me within the world I'd grown up with.

Alex was part of the reason I stayed, too. I'd never meant to fall in love with my charge, but, well, one thing I've learnt is that you can't control fate. No matter how hard you try.

I resented being a guardian. I had no control over my own life, and it could end at any moment. True, the fact that I was slightly psychic meant I usually had prior warning, but that's not the point. I could potentially sacrifice myself for someone who wouldn't even appreciate it. I had no choices, at least none that excited me. I didn't want to just be a female dhampir nor did I want to be a Guardian, but out of the two I'd picked the latter.

It was unfair; a Moroi could do whatever they wanted, with no restrictions or prejudices. I knew none of my friends or family would have judged me if I'd turned my back on the Moroi world – indeed, my father would have encouraged me to be 'free' as he put it – but I know I would have regretted it.

So here I was, utterly pissed off with life.

Well, no, that was a bit harsh. There were a lot of good things in my life. With Alex I had a loving relationship and the chance of a family - something I'd always wanted – if only I could accept that it wasn't going to be taken away from me. I had wonderful friends and family. I was reasonably well off for a 26 year old. Not a bad life. It just wasn't the one I wanted.

I'd not been like the other kids, eagerly anticipating the day I became a guardian, excited at the thought of slaying Strigoi. No, I'd thought about how I'd constantly be in danger, how my life would never be my own. I didn't see it as a calling, as a duty; I saw it as enslavement. Nobody else understood, and if I voiced my fears I was told that I was being overly morbid and that "They came first." Everyone else accepted that; I didn't. I have too questioning a nature – I didn't think it was fair that I didn't get a life. I want to _live_ my life, and I'm sorry if that makes me selfish, but that's how I feel. It's unfair – the Moroi would have an uprising if their choices were restricted as ours were!

But what can I do?

**A/N Please review! And don't worry, Rose and co will be with us soon…**

**I'd also like to shout out to CandiGal for the review and the love, and to RosemarieBelikov for the Story Alert. Thanks guys!**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N Here's the next chapter. Things are finally going to start happening…**

**Oh, by the way, I'm English, so I'm going to be using a lot of English slang/products/mannerisms. If you don't get something, please ask me to explain it.**

**Disclaimer: *Sighs* Again, people, I don't own Vampire Academy. The lovely Richelle Mead does. (I wouldn't have turned Dimitri Strigoi…)**

**On with the show…**

Beep. Beep. Beep.

Noooooooo!

Beep. Beep. Beepbeepbeep.

I refuse to get up!

Beepbeepbeepbeepbeep!

Ow, my ears.

Pushing the bedcovers down, I opened my eyes blearily. What time is it? 11 o'clock, the stupid thing read. I'd been on the night shift, and as you can imagine, it made me very tired. But I had to get up-I still had to do my job, even if I was sleep deprived. Groaning, I swung my legs out of my bed and rubbed the sleep from my eyes, my mind screaming "but I don't wanna get up!" I told it to quit its bitching. Yes, I was talking to myself. Guess I'm on the path to insanity. I was probably already half way there, anyway.

Blinking, I trudged towards my wardrobe and pulled out the first things I saw. I ended up with a pair of black jeans and a Muse t-shirt. Huh, look at that, I got lucky. I grabbed underwear from my drawer and walked into the bathroom.

To find a massive spider in the bathtub.

A giant, hairy spider, glaring at me malevolently. Well, I thought it was glaring at me.

My scream reverberated around the room. Footsteps came pounding up the stairs, and Alex came bursting through the door.

"What-what is it?" He panted, clutching his chest. "Strigoi?"

"N-no. It's worse. It's a fucking spider!" I whispered, quivering.

Alex looked at me. "A spider." He repeated. "Oh god, you have got to get over this phobia." He sighed, leaning over to grab a cup to catch the spider with.

"No, no not that one! It's my favourite. I don't want spider germs all over it! Use the plastic one." I said, pointing to a cup on the counter. Alex rolled his eyes and sighed again.

After he deposited the spider outside, after telling it never to enter my room again (my instructions), he came back.

"You are mad." He muttered, leaning against the wall. He was tall, as most Moroi were, but he'd outgrown the lankiness that seemed to come with that kind of height. His brown eyes and black hair completed the package of "very good looking man". Those brown eyes now looked at me, dancing with amusement at my "experience".

I huffed. "If you're just going to insult me, you can leave right now. Begone! I need to get dressed."

He laughed. "No. You're my guardian; I'm supposed to be with you at all times. Plus, I need to protect you from more spider incidents." His mouth softened, and he smiled at me, a proper smile, this time.

I shook my head. "I'm the one who's supposed to protect you, you idiot." I grinned up at him. I'm tiny compared to his 6'4' height. Then again, most people are. Wrapping my arms around his waist I told him "You've done your duty, now off you go." He pouted. "No, you are not sharing my shower! Go-I'll see you in the kitchen." With that, I kissed him on the cheek, and made a move to go. He caught my hand.

"Alright, I'm off. I still don't get how you can kill Strigoi, but spiders turn you into a terrified girly-girl." He muttered, shaking his head. "Girly-girl", moi? I don't think so. His lips quirked, and he bent down to return my kiss, this time on the lips.

I returned it fiercely, as I always did, forgetting that I hadn't yet brushed my teeth and that my hair looked like a haystack. The feel of his lips moving with mine, well…it was indescribable. Part of me still didn't believe that I was allowed to do this, while the other… the other part just revelled in it. I loved him so much, even when he teased me. I saw that same look in his eyes, the one that said "How did I get so lucky?", but I didn't understand it for him. I didn't feel like much of a prize. I knew I was okay, but I was nothing special.

He broke the kiss, cutting off my internal musing, and leaned his forehead against mine. "See you in a minute, darling" He breathed, and went.

"Thanks for getting rid of the spider!" I yelled after him. All I heard in response was a muffled chuckle.

Narrowing my eyes at the now closed door, I headed back to the now spider-free bathroom, humming along to a Queen song. My shower woke me up a little, and by the time I reached the kitchen I was halfway awake.

"Ah, sleeping beauty awakens!" Dom mocked. He smirked at me. "You know, you didn't have to burst my eardrums, screaming. It was only a spider." He sniggered.

I glared at him and he choked on his cereal. "I am allowed to be afraid of spiders. You scream just as loud when it's a moth!" I said, going to the cupboards to get some cereal of my own. "Where are all the Coco Pops? You guys better not have eaten them all, or I swear… Oh, here they are." Just then, Alex came through the door, phone in hand.

"Zanna, Ariana wants to talk to you." I perked up. Ariana was Alex's sister and we're good friends. Alex had an unhappy look on his face-I wasn't sure what that was about.

He handed me the phone, kissing my cheek as he passed me. I put it to my ear. "Ariana? I'm here."

"Oh, hi! How are you?" She enquired, sounding slightly less bouncy than she normally did. Odd.

"I'm fine. So what is it that you want to talk about?" I asked, pouring my cereal into a bowl. Dom silently passed me the milk. I mouthed "thanks".

She sighed into the phone. "Uh, it's nothing really. It's just… I think the queen's planning something. You know Vasilisa Dragomir? Well, apparently, she's having a baby and…" She paused, then continued. "They want to make you an extra guardian for her. Don't worry, I'm sure it's a rumour." She said quickly.

I wasn't so sure. I knew the queen had a grudge against me. I bit my lip. "Well, okay. If you think it's just a rumour. Thanks for warning me." I put some of my cereal in my mouth and chewed, mulling it over.

"Yeah." She breathed. "Just be careful, alright? The queens plans are never good, and even if it is a rumour, well, I don't want you to get into trouble. I like you." She joked. "Remember there are loads of people who've got your back if she does try something." I smiled into the phone.

"Liar. I know full well your parents hate me."

"Hey, don't be mean. You know I wasn't talking about them, and you know it. I meant your friends, and your parents. Me and Alex. Even Dom."

"Hey, I heard that!" Dom called. I rolled my eyes at him.

"I know. Thanks again. You're sure it's just a rumour?"

"Erm, about 75% sure." She told me, sounding serious.

I giggled. "Let's just hope you're right. I don't want to be dragged off to the Court. Though, I guess meeting Vasilisa Dragomir wouldn't be so bad. She's the one with Spirit magic? And she supposedly fought for Moroi to go defensive. Hmm, intriguing. Maybe I wouldn't mind guarding her." No, I wanted to stay home, but if I did have to leave, at least I'd be guarding someone interesting.

"Yeah. Her Guardian is Rose Hathaway, and they've got a bond and everything, so scandal!" She laughed. "Interesting people. Anyway, I've got to go. Sorry, hon. I'll talk to you later. I just wanted to warn you."

"Yeah, bye." The phone disconnected, and I palmed it hand to hand, thinking over the news I'd just gleaned from Ariana. It seemed unlikely that Yelena would use me as a Guardian for one of her most precious royals, but then, she was pretty determined to ruin my relationship with Alex. It could be true.

"What are you thinking about?" Dom asked curiously.

I blinked and shook my head to clear my thoughts. "Um, well, apparently Yelena intends for me to guard Vasilisa Dragomir. That's what the rumours are saying, anyway." I looked up to find Alex and Dom looking at me incredulously. I smiled innocently back at them and carried on eating my cereal.

Dom coughed. "And you're just going to leave it at that?" He looked surprised.

I sighed. "Look, guys, it's all going to come to nothing. It's only a rumour."

"But what if it's true?" Alex asked quietly.

"Then I'll deal with it, cross that bridge, and any other cliché you can think of." I was being overly blasé deliberately. I didn't want to consider the possibilities if it were true. I glanced at them over my shoulder as I grabbed a glass for a drink. "Oh, come on. You don't actually think it's true, do you?" I snorted.

Alex looked troubled. "I'm allowed to be worried. Yelena has a lot of power. Is it so terrible I don't want you to leave me?" He snapped. My eyes widened, and I could feel my eyebrows going up. This kind of outburst was rare for him – if he had something to say, he'd say it privately. His face fell, and he sighed. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to snap, and I'm not trying to be possessive. It's just a letter came for you today, and it looks suspiciously Court-like. After Ana's call, I'm a little apprehensive"

"And you didn't give me the letter right away?" I was outraged-it was my letter, he had no right to withhold it from me!

"I-I was going to give it to you! I forgot!" Alex stuttered. If there's one thing I've learnt from having to live with men all the time, it's that they always cower before an enraged woman (especially one who can beat them up). He was so in for it!

"Give it to me now, Aleksandr Ivashkov! I mean it!" I shook my fist in his direction. He knew if I hit him, it would hurt. A lot. He scuttled off.

"Ha ha. This is like Eastenders. Any minute now, you'll be after him with the bread knife." Dom guffawed.

I glared at him icily, and he shut up abruptly. "I don't need a bread knife. I have a stake." I told him primly.

Alex returned, letter in hand. I snatched it out of his hand, noting that the Court seal was unbroken. I didn't need to kill him. Yet. I ripped it open, revealing the contents. It read:

_Dear Suzanna _(Ugh, the dreaded full name.)

_Due to the disgraceful nature of you relationship with your charge, Aleksandr Ivashkov, we have decided to relocate you to Princess Vasilisa Dragomir, who is in need of an extra Guardian on account of her pregnancy. We hope that this will be incentive to end your relationship with him, so that you can return after the duration of the Princesses pregnancy. The honour given to the Guardian who protects the Dragomir clan is important, and we hope you appreciate this._

_Apart from your personal indiscretions, we realise you are a capable, and some might say, impressive Guardian, especially with your 'gifts' to guide you. But we must insist that you end your relationship with Lord Ivashkov; you are not good enough for him, and as a dhampir, you certainly can have no future with him. You will not disgrace the Ivashkov name. Use this opportunity to reassess your life and jump start your career._

_Yours sincerely,_

_Yelena Conta_

_(Queen of the Moroi)_

_PS Instructions for your job are enclosed._

I took a deep breath. How _dare_ she. This was so unfair. Why, I hadn't even started the relationship, Alex had. Why was it my fault? Why was I the scapegoat for all her prejudices? It was all so awful that I couldn't stand it-she had no right! I crumpled up the letter into a ball and said, "It appears I am off to America", my voice tight with rage.

"What? No!" Alex gasped.

I uncrumpled the letter and read out woodenly: "Due to the disgraceful nature of your relationship with Aleksandr Ivashkov we have decided to relocate you…Blah. Blah. Blah. You are not good enough for him. Blah Blah." I was furious and shaking. The bitch.

"How crass." Dom remarked. "But then the Conta's have never been known for their impeccable manners. Yelena especially." He walked over and put an arm around me. "Ignore her. You know she's wrong." He said, nudging me. "Ooh, look at your face. If the bitch was here right now, she'd be a pile of ashes. Cheer up-it's only a year at most, and she can't split you two up for real. You two are so cutesy sometimes it makes me want to hurl, eh?" He hugged me, and I reciprocated. Dom is very good at hugs. It might have something to do with the fact that he is 6'5', and very broad around the chest and shoulder area, and he's always warm. I sniffed.

"It's not fair." I told him. It came out muffled against his chest. No, it wasn't fair, but there was nothing any of us could do. I looked at Alex from under Dom's shoulder. He mouthed "Love you" at me. I smiled weakly. How could I bear to leave here?

**A/N And we're done. So what do you think? Please leave a review, because otherwise I have no idea whether or not this is any good. How am I supposed to continue this if I don't know whether or not you guys like it?**

**Shout outs to saraiibelikov for the favourite, and to Monstergirl245, for the reviews, and the favourite!**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N Here we are, another chapter. I'm surprised at how fast I'm putting these up. Anyway, off we go…**

**Disclaimer: Well, I sued for the rights for Vampire Academy, but they told me that I would never own it. So therefore, I don't own VA, Richelle Mead does. However, I do own a full set of the books and all my characters, so you could technically say I do…**

There was no way I was getting out of it. I'd appealed to the Court representative here in England, I'd written to the Guardian Council, I'd gotten Alex to make calls, and still I had to go. We'd even tried to get Alex's aunt to talk to the queen, but all to no avail. I was stuck-I had to go to America, or risk losing my job.

So, it was with a heavy heart that I packed my bags. It'd had been a good excuse to go shopping, which ended up with me and Dom in a naughty lingerie shop, and Alex somewhere in a Garden centre. I'm still not quite sure how that happened, to be honest… Then there had been the whole fuss about finding my passport, which was found in the bathroom cabinet, of all places. Yeah, our house is pretty much a mess-two guys and one girl does not a tidy house make.

Basically, our whole lives had been upturned. I didn't like leaving Alex with only one Guardian. As good as Dom was, I was happier when I knew I was there to protect him. I might not have enjoyed my job, but I always tried my damnedest to make sure everyone was safe. Dom was physically huge, so I had no worries about him being capable, but all things being equal, I'd rather I was still home. Dom was the older brother I'd never had, especially as Yelena didn't like him either. Like me, he had a "scandalous" parentage. His mother was a Moroi, but his father was human. Dom was the result of a one night stand, and so he had no clue who his father was. He just knew he was black, which was why he had such gorgeous colouring. He was very close to his mum and step dad, though, and they'd supported him when he'd realised he was bisexual. He was an excellent Guardian, and he, Alex and I had become very close. Probably because of the random stuff we'd done in University (I believe staging a mock trial in a lecture we weren't supposed to be in was involved. Ah, Uni…). Maybe it had something to do with the fact we constantly killed Strigoi together, too.

I pressed my lips together, willing myself not to cry as I looked around my room for the last time in a year. It looked forlorn without my stuff. I mean, Alex's stuff was scattered around, but my things were prettier, and it looked as if I didn't even exist. I gave a sad smile, and turned my back, lugging my giant suitcase behind me. I made my way to the car, stowing my luggage in the boot, before sliding into the passenger seat, where Alex was waiting.

"I still don't get why I'm not allowed to drive your car." I grumbled to Alex. His black, shiny Aston Martin was his pride and joy, as well as the most ostentatious thing he owned, apart from the house, of course. "I mean, just because I got it scratched once! Or twice… But still!" I didn't really care about cars, I just liked driving. I'm a bit of a control freak.

Alex raised his eyebrows. "That is exactly why you're not going near my car." He told me. "You're a liability." I just gave him an innocent look.

I sighed, loudly, and tilted my head back to look at Dom, who was in the back seat, legs stretched out. "Stop digging your legs into my back!"

He kicked me. I glared at him, and gave him the finger. He kicked me again, harder this time, and I was just about to throw my carry on bag at him when Alex's hand wrapped around my wrist. "Stop it, you two. I'm just about to get off the driveway, and here you are, acting like children. You could have lost your passport!"

Dom went "Ooh, burn…" I reached into the backseat to try and grab him when I realised, while Alex had sounded a bit too much like a parent, he was right, we were acting like children. I slumped back into my seat, ignoring the comfort of the luxurious leather seats, as Alex backed out of the driveway.

As soon as we were on our way, I asked my most burning question. "You will send my motorbike over, right?" If the Aston Martin was Alex's baby, then my Triumph was mine. She was impractical, but I loved the rush I got when riding. Alex didn't need to say yes though; I knew he would through my inner sense.

He nodded, as he turned right at the roundabout. "Of course, what am I going to do with it, keep it as a display piece? I can't ride it."

"Her." I said absently. "She has a name-Scarlett."

"Um, you do realise it's an inanimate object, right?" Dom asked, his voice on the edge of laughter. 

"She isn't to me." I responded, and decided to change the subject before me and Dom ended up in another fight. "I still can't believe we have to go all the way to Heathrow. I mean, there are tons of airports, but we have to go to the one that's, like, 3 hours away."

"They said it's because that's the only airport the Court pilot knows here." Dom remarked.

"And you know that's a lie." I'd "seen" it through a vision; sometimes I could almost… tune into people. I'd seen the queen decide to make me go out of my way to the airport, just because she could. "I mean, what pilot worth their salt doesn't know more than one airport in England?"

He shrugged. I guess he didn't know either. We were pretty much silent after that; me brooding over my new job, and the other two being remarkably quiet. If this was a normal trip, we'd be playing stupid games, and be trying to spot the best car. Instead, we silently cruised down the motorway, music playing softly in the background. About midway, we stopped for a bathroom break, and I was left to guard the bathroom door as both of them went in.

Alex came out first, and slipped his arm around my waist, pulling me closer to him. He played with my long red hair while we waited, me scanning the corridor. Dom eventually emerged, and announced that he was heading for Starbucks, and did we want anything? I asked for a Mocha, and Alex declined. He disappeared, and Alex took my hand, taking me towards the bookshop. He stopped beside it, and pulling me into an embrace, began to kiss me. I responded happily, all the repressed frustration coming out. We were getting pretty hot, and had we been at home, I was sure clothes would have been flying off, as they had last night. We broke apart only when we needed to breathe, and I looked up at him, seeing the mutual frustration at not being able to do anything about the situation in his eyes.

"I don't want you to go." He told me, his voice sad and angry at the same time.

"I don't want to go." I replied. I would have said more, but Dom reappeared, two steaming drinks in his hand. I took mine gladly, and looked at Dom this time. "You will look after Chloe, for me won't you? And look out for Cassie-I know she's human, but I want her safe. And check on my mum and dad, both of you. And, just take care of yourselves, alright?" I gabbled.

"Definitely. We'll make sure everyone's safe. Your best friends will be fine. By the way, what did you tell Cassie?" Alex questioned.

"I just said I got this great job offer in America and made up some stuff." I shrugged. "It wasn't that hard." No, it hadn't been that hard, but I didn't really like lying to one of my friends. Cassie was human, and I'd met her in University. We'd gotten on together so well that we were still friends. Obviously, she had no clue who or what I really was, but she was a very good friend. Chloe was my best friend from the Academy, and she was Moroi. I'd wanted to be her Guardian, but although she was well off, she wasn't royal, so she only got one guardian, not me.

We piled back into the car and were off on our way again. It started to rain, heavily, and the pitter-patter sound broke up the silence. We got there with enough time to spare, so I could say my goodbyes properly. I'd said goodbye to my parents and friends, and Ariana yesterday, and asked them not to come to the airport. I probably wouldn't go if I had to say goodbye to everyone.

I dragged my case behind me, and hitched my carry on bag up my arm. I had no stakes anywhere in my luggage, because I had to go through security. The Court had promised to provide my weapons. Dom had his arm around my shoulders, and Alex held my free hand. I felt stronger like that; I'd be gone for a year, but they'd be waiting for me.

When I eventually got to check in, I turned to them. "Well, this is it. I'm gonna miss you guys."

They nodded, and Alex spoke up. "So you'll call, okay? And remember, we're all coming to visit you in a couple of weeks, so we won't be too far away."

"Yeah, only a long plane ride away." I grouched. "Goodbye." I said sadly, and turned to go, rolling my case behind me. I reached the check in point and looked back. They were still there. I waved, and blew a kiss, struggling not to let out the sob that was building. It wasn't fair.

**A/N And we're done. Please give me feedback, even if it's only one word. I'm feeling unloved. **** And I'm exhausted-I've had so much work, but it's all fun so that's good. By the way, do you love the new My Chemical Romance song as much me? It's awesome!**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N Next chapter…**

**Disclaimer: Vampire Academy? Mine? Nah.**

The flight had been okay. I liked plane rides, and believe it or not, I enjoyed turbulence. It was kind of like being bounced up and down in a weird way. Plus, the Court planes (one of which I'd been flown over on, along with a bunch of Moroi I didn't know.) were supremely comfortable, and the food was free. But I couldn't enjoy it because all I could see was my last image of Alex. I closed my eyes, and he was still there, looking forlorn, the picture imprinted on my eyelids. The uber comfy seats didn't compensate for the fact that I'd been forced to leave my happy little life back home.

The plane landed at about 1:00 pm, the middle of the night for the vampires who lived at Court. Of course, seeing as it was a Court plane we landed on the Court runway. Everyone else rushed off the plane, eager to get into the warmth, and away from the Strigoi threat. I went slower, savouring my last few minutes of freedom.

Finally, I stepped out of the plane, after earning a glare from the pilot, who obviously wanted me to hurry up so he could go. I poked my tongue out at him childishly, and walked down the stairs. It was October, so it was getting cold. I was suddenly very glad I'd thought to bring a jacket. I shrugged my trench coat on, pulling it tight and tying it. I wasn't really dressed for guarding, because instead of the monochrome look the Guardians usually rocked, I'd chosen to wear a green dress with military-style decoration and black leggings, with heels. It was my last act of defiance, I suppose.

Sighing, I peered up at the sky, relishing the sun. I rarely got to see it, being nocturnal. Nobody was waiting for me on the runway, and as someone would take my bags for me, I had no reason to delay. I huffed, wishing I'd forgone the heels, and stomped down to the wrought-iron gates that encircled the Moroi Royal Court. After the attacks at the Academy in Montana (which was incidentally where Lissa and Rose had been educated), and Queen Tatiana had been killed, security had been upped, and you couldn't technically land inside the Court anymore. First you had to identify yourself.

Humming, I tapped the intercom button, and waited for the red light that indicated that someone was responding.

"Hello. State your name and business please." Issued from the speakers, the tone clipped and impatient.

"Za-Suzanna Asher. I'm here to be a secondary Guardian for Princess Vasilisa Dragomir" I rolled my eyes. The Court was so pompous and outdated. It wasn't like Strigoi were going to leap out of my luggage, now, was it?

"Entry granted. Please come in." Oh, so now they decided to be polite?

"Thanks," I said acidly. The great iron gates swung open to reveal the Court complex. My heels clicked on the ground as I walked through. I headed to a little kiosk that seemed to be security, and rapped on the window. "Uh, I was told I'd need to show ID?" The man behind the glass stared at me insolently, as if to say, "Of course, you idiot." I suppressed a growl.

After what seemed like a long pause, he nodded, and I dug through my rucksack to find my Guardian ID, and handed it over to be inspected. The man, who I presumed was a dhampir, took it as if handling something covered in slime. Was it my accent?

"Right," He said, enunciating every syllable, "carry on. You're free to come in." He handed me back my card, dropping it from the tips of his fingers. Bastard. What did I do? Yet another gate opened, and sashayed through.

Suddenly, my phone beeped, which ruined my dignified departure from the security prick. "Shit, Shit! Where is it? Bugger!" I muttered, shovelling through my bag until I found it.

"Zanna, is that you?" Came the voice of Alex.

"No, it's some random person off the street, answering my phone." I told him. "Of course it's me!"

He ignored my comment. "What are you doing?"

"Well, right now, I'm trying to find Reception so I can start my wonderful new job." My voice was bitingly sarcastic. "D'you happen to know where it is?"

"Yup. That's why I called. I figured you'd get lost." I narrowed my eyes at the phone. Damn his smugness! "Okay, you see that big building-"

"There are a lot of big buildings here, Alex, that doesn't really help." I interrupted.

"Let me finish! Anyway, the one that's like a castle, and has gargoyles on the roof, that's the Reception. Mum said there should be a Guardian outside, waiting for you. You got that, honey?"

"Don't you 'Honey' me. And how come your mother was being helpful? She hates me."

"Hey, don't knock it. Talk to you later. I love you." He replied. I could hear the hint of a chuckle.

"I love you, too. Bye" I mumbled back. With that, he ended the call. I knew it was stupid, but I already felt abandoned. Apparently, being a 'bad influence' gets you sent to Pennsylvania. Go figure. Anyway, I wasn't the bad influence. Yeah, right. It was Dom who led me and Alex astray.

I decided to follow Alex's instructions, and lo and behold, there was actually someone outside of the building he'd indicated. In front of me stood a dhampir. An extremely tall and good-looking dhampir. He looked to be around 30, with long brown hair tied at the nape of his neck, and deep brown eyes. He had a light tan, and was wearing a long coat, a duster. It was quite funky, actually.

"Suzanna? Suzanna Asher?" He asked, a light Russian accent lacing his words.

"Zanna, please." I said, tired of hearing my full name. I knew it was just a formality, but I'd never gone by my full name and I really didn't like it. "Anyway, that would be me. Would you be the poor sap sent to collect the troublesome young Guardian?"

He laughed politely. "Yes. Follow me please." Ooh, off to my new job! How very exciting! (Please notice the heavy irony.)

So I followed him, staring at my surroundings wide eyed. I couldn't deny it, the Court was gorgeous. The buildings were elaborate and old fashioned, almost looking like mini-palaces. I spotted a park in the centre of the courtyard I was in. It had tall trees and what looked like a shrubbery and a pond. How pretty. Hey, don't look at me like that-I grew up in a normal, boring home, although my school looked pretty much the same, and yes, you could say the place I lived in now was almost a castle… I'm allowed to be entranced by the Court, okay? I like old buildings, which is good, because England's full of them.

"What's your name?" I asked curiously. He knows mine.

"Dimitri. Dimitri Belikov." He said shortly. I could feel the shocked look spreading across my face and quickly controlled it. This was the infamous Dimitri Belikov? The ex Strigoi, brought back to uh, dhampirness, I guess, by the woman he loved and her best friend? The lover who also happened to be his student at the time? Wow.

"Sorry, what was that?" He murmured. Shit, I said that out loud, didn't I? Way to make a good impression. I realised I should have known he'd been here, since his Rose was the woman who'd brought him back, and she was the main Guardian of Lissa Dragomir. I'm really not very bright today. Fortunately, Dimitri stopped in front of what looked to be an apartment block, before I could say or do anything else stupid. He gave me a courteous smile, and opened the door for me. There. Someone with _manners._

He came in behind me, and shut the door. "This way please." He said, pointing upwards.

"You don't say much, do you?" I told him, raising my eyebrows.

"Neither do you." He countered, glancing back at me, and managing to raise only one eyebrow. I was jealous; I've never been able to do that.

"I just had a long flight." I defended myself. He shook his head, and carried on up the stairs, until he got to the top floor, where he opened yet another door.

"Your new Guardian, Princess." He said respectfully. A giggle came from inside and a tinkling voice said: 

"Dimitri, how many times do I have to tell you, it's Lissa." She sighed long-sufferingly. "Come on in; introduce us to the new girl."

I heard a sultry laugh and another woman came to the door. "Yeah, come on, Comrade, let us interrogate her." She smiled reassuringly at me, but grinned at Dimitri. His Guardian mask slipped and he gave her a proper smile, with actual emotions. This must be Rose. Interesting.

She was a couple of inches taller than me, with long dark hair, hanging down past her shoulders, big brown eyes and tanned skin. I immediately felt terrible. She was beautiful.

She pushed the door open wider, and grabbed Dimitri's hand, telling me to "Come in." over her shoulder. I went in and another Guardian jumped up to take my bag. I muttered "Thanks" and surveyed the room.

A woman with white-blonde hair flowing over her shoulders and sparkling green eyes sat on the sofa sat on the sofa, clutching the hand of a black haired man with scarily piercing blue eyes. They were staring adoringly at each other. I had to look away. It reminded me too fiercely of the man I'd had to leave behind. I scanned the rest of the room, seeing Rose and Dimitri leaning against the far wall, and the other Guardian going into a room, where he deposited my bag. He strode back in and took his position at the door.

"So…" Said the blonde, who I realised must be Lissa. "What's your name?"

"Suzanna, but please, please call me Zanna." I replied. There were a few raised eyebrows. So people had heard of me? I stood tall and rolled my eyes. "Yes, I'm the one who seduced her charge, and has him spellbound with my magical powers. Any questions? No? Good."

Rose smirked and Lissa looked taken back. I sighed. Losing my temper is never a good idea. They were just lucky this wasn't me really angry. "I'm sorry. It's just-I hate being judged. And I had a long plane ride." I tried to look apologetic.

Lissa grinned, revealing her fangs. "That's fine. I know you must be feeling strange. I understand you've had to leave everyone at home, and I'm sorry for that, but I hope you'll enjoy being here. Now!" She clapped her hands. "Introductions! I'm Lissa, the guy sitting next to me is Christian and Eddie's by the door. Dimitri and Rose are by the wall."

I nodded, I'd guessed as much. I stuck my hand out for her to shake. She did so, and they all looked at me curiously. I've never been one to stand on ceremony. Why does everyone expect the English to be so formal?

"Well, I guess we better go over what you'll be doing. As far as I can see, you'll just be doing regular Guardian duties, and taking over when Rose has time off. I don't think you'll be guarding anyone else but me…but, who knows? And…" She announced, standing up. "Your room is…" She walked through the door and I followed suit. She pointed to a door with an elegantly scripted plaque, which read _Guardian Suzanna Asher, _and said "…here!" giving a flourish of her hand. I went in to find a beautifully furnished bedroom.

There was a four-poster bed with red curtains, held back by matching red ties, a big mahogany wardrobe and a little gothic-style dressing table. The bedspread was red too, embroidered with beads and sequins.

"Wow…" I whispered. "Thank you!" I hadn't expected them to go to so musch trouble. It was so sweet.

Lissa looked pleased. "We're glad you like it. Aren't we, Christian? Hello?" Christian smirked. She hit him.

"Yeah. Ow. Yeah we are! Liss, did you have to hit me?" She looked smug.

"Alex called me, and his cousin called our friend Adrian. He told us we had to make your room special. He said we had to take carte of you. It's obvious he really loves you." Lissa said kindly.

I was touched, and I loved the feeling of reassurance it gave me. "You still didn't have to do it. It was really sweet of you. And it sounds just like him. But he knows I don't need taking care of!"

Everyone grinned, and Lissa murmured, "Really, we didn't mind. We'll leave you to settle in." They turned to go, shutting the door behind them.

I let out a gust of breath and sat on the breath I didn't know I'd been holding. Maybe, just maybe, it wouldn't be so bad, living here…

**A/N See, things are moving along. We've got most of the original characters, and Adrian will appear soon, I promise! And, I will be moving the plot along soon. I have a lot of devious ideas for conspiracies and such. *Insert evil laugh***

**Please review!**

**Much love,**

**The Hatter**


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N Look, guys, I'm getting slightly upset about the whole "not reviewing" thing going on. I'm not going to stop the story, or anything stupid like that, but I would really like some feedback. I may not be the best writer in the entire world (Philip Pullman is), but I'm not awful, and the plot is going somewhere, I promise! I want to thank Candigal for being such a great reviewer!**

**Right, rant over. Sorry about that.**

**Off we go, into the realms of my sick and twisted mind. *Maniacal laughter emanates* Enjoy…**

**Disclaimer: Me, own Vampire Academy? *Snort* Nooooooooooo. That came from Richelle Mead's mind, not mine. I just enjoy playing around with her characters.**

**And no, not in a dirty way. In an "I control their lives" kind of way. I have issues…**

**Ah-hem, on with the story…**

This was a curious situation I'd landed myself in. I felt like Alice, confused by the Wonderland I'd appeared in. So, the queen may hate me, but it didn't look like Lissa and her friends did. They seemed…nice. It would probably take a while for me to get to know them, and they really didn't have the best impression of me at the moment but, well I could get along with them. I really could.

My phone rang, the opening notes of Lacuna Coil's "Spellbound" piercing through my thoughts. I pressed "Answer", and put the phone to my ear.

"Hey!" Came the cheery voice of Cassie, my human best friend. "How's America treating you? Longing for home yet?" I heard scuffling in the background, and the loud thump of something being dropped. "Hang on." Cassie told me breathlessly. I could still hear her though, courtesy of my improved hearing. "What the fuck was that? If you've broken that, James, I'll kill you! It's over two thousand years old! TWO FUCKING THOUSAND YEARS! I don't care if it was an accident!" There was rustling as she opened something. I heard a sigh of relief. "It's okay. You're lucky. Had anything been damaged, I would have rendered you impotent." She told this "James" menacingly. I had no doubt she would have. I should probably explain who and what she is. Cassie (full name Cassandra Hawes) is an Archaeologist, specialising in Ancient cultures. She was working at a museum at the moment, as well as going on digs all the time. She was the youngest curator they had, a fact she was very proud of. She adored her job, a huge contrast to me, and was a very funny and supportive friend.

"Sorry about that. We've got this idiot working here. He's pompous as hell, and he drops everything. I mean, I'm clumsy, but I know that. That's why I get other people to carry things. A bit of a mistake here, obviously." 

I laughed. "Yes, so I heard. I liked the impotence threat."

She growled. "I should do it anyway. His genes don't need to be continued. So what are you up to? Have you heard from Alex or Chloe yet?" She asked. I heard the swivel of her chair as she got comfortable.

"Alex, yep. Chloe, no. But I think she's at work. Everything's okay at the moment, but really, I've only just got here."

"See, I'm the better friend! I phone while at work! No, but seriously, you aren't even a little bit homesick?"

"Well, obviously. But the people I'm working with seem nice, so, it's okay. What are you up to?"

"Well, apparently, they've found more nomad mummies in Siberia, and since I'm the only one who can speak a bit of Russian, they've been getting me to talk with the archaeologists there about getting some people over to the dig. Other than that, I've just been sorting stuff. It's just a typical day, really." She sounded happy, and satisfied.

"Good, good. I miss you guys already. It's pathetic." I told her, and she laughed in response.

"Don't worry; I get that all the time. Of course, I leave voluntarily, so I can get into different tombs and stuff, but it doesn't mean I don't miss home. You were basically forced to go. When are you coming home?"

"I don't really know. I mean, Alex and everyone are coming in two weeks. I could probably ship you out. The people I'm working for have private jets!" I wanted her to come. It would be nice to see her, and everybody. I don't know how I'd be able to explain the Court, but I could find a way, I'm sure.

"I'd love to." She said wistfully. "But I can't. I've got to help organise a big exhibition at the museum, and I can't leave. I'm sorry."

"Hey, it's not your fault. I'll be coming over soon, anyway." I was disappointed, but if she had to work, she had to work. I wouldn't make her walk out on her commitments.

"I wish I could go. I've never been to America." She sounded a little sad. "Ah, better get to work. I'll call you soon, probably with full details of James' castration and eventual dismemberment." 

I chuckled. "Bye-bye!"

"Byeeeeeeee!" She said, her accent and intonation making the 'e' sound elongate. The call clicked off. I didn't really know what to do with myself. I could go and see what Lissa and the others were doing, but on the other hand, I could unpack. My cases were standing by the wardrobe. I decided in favour of unpacking-I could sort myself out mentally while doing that, and then I could just slip into the living room, unobtrusively, and try to strike up conversation.

I dragged the case and unzipped it. Immediately, my belongings started to pop out. So much for my neat packing skills. I opened the wardrobe, checking to see if I needed any clothes hangers. Sure enough, I found lots of silk covered hangers sitting neatly on the clothes pole. They really had thought of everything. I carefully eased out my clothes, and started to unfold them, placing them on the hangers. My shoes went on the bottom of the wardrobe, and my collection of jewellery and make up went on the dressing table. I put my picture and knick-knacks on the dressing table, and slowly, slowly, the room started look a bit more like me. I put my cases under the bed and pushed a hand through my hair. I was exhausted.

I checked the mirror, and sure enough, my hair was an unruly red mess. Pulling my hairbrush and a hair tie from my bag I attempted to pull it into a semblance of a ponytail. My makeup was in dire need of a touch up, so I did that too. I knew there was no point, as all I'd be doing was acting bodyguard, but I liked to look good. And next to Lissa and Rose, I needed all the help in the beauty department I could get. My clothes I left as they were; I knew I could fight in them if needed. The heels I slipped off in favour of a worn pair of black Converse. I would have to go to the gym soon-I needed to train. Left alone, I'd never go to the gym, but in this job, if you didn't train, you didn't live.

I felt confident enough to brave the living room. I pushed open the door, and knocked on the door of the living room. Rose opened it, looking surprised. "Why d'you knock? Just come in."

I bit my lip, feeling stupid and awkward and nodded. "Oh, okay. I didn't know if you guys were like that or not. Some Moroi like to have us knock before we come in."

"Surely you don't do that at home?" Lissa asked.

"Well, no. Me and Dom come and go as we please. We're all more like roommates than anything else. Well, we were." I blushed. The amount of times Dom had walked in on us was astronomical, but then, we'd walked in on him too.

"Who's Dom?" Lissa inquired.

"Oh, Alex's other Guardian. We've all been together since school. I mean, we didn't know each other then, but we went to the same school, and Dom and Alex were in the same year. I was a few months younger."

Lissa looked interested. "So it's like you're all best friends living together? That sounds fun. It's pretty much how we are, too." She said, indicating the whole group with a sweep of her hand. "I mean, obviously, I've known Rose since forever, but I've known everyone else from the Academy too."

I nodded. I already knew what she was telling me. It was common knowledge that Princess Vasilisa was best friends with her Guardian, and consorted with unsavoury people. Or so Alex's parents said.

"So, come on. Tell us about yourself!" Lissa giggled. I hate it when people force me to talk about myself…

I forced a smile. "Well, I'm twenty six, prefer to be known as Zanna, and my favourite colour is blue. Uh, um, uh… I don't know what else to say! You've put me on the spot!" I was sure I was blushing.

Rose coughed. "Liss, you realise you're scaring her, right? She only just arrived here. She's not exactly going to be ready to tell us everything. Ignore her, Zanna, she's slightly high. Hormones, you know."

Lissa gave her a mock glare. "I am not high! And I have no hormones!" She whirled on Christian. "Do I, Christian?" The look on her face told him it was in his best interests to say yes. He looked frightened.

"Um, no, of course not. You're perfectly fine." Lissa smiled at him.

"See." She announced. I decided to stay quiet. I was saved from having to say anything else when the doorbell went.

Eddie was at the door in a flash, and had it open within seconds. I felt awed-I've never been able to move that fast. There was a man in the doorway, evidently someone everyone here knew, because they all relaxed when they saw him.

"Adrian!" Lissa cried. "We were wondering when you'd turn up." He doffed a bow.

"I am here, my princess. I wasn't going to miss the chance to see your new Guardian, especially one our dear queen is so afraid of." Afraid of? The queen's not scared of me. She just hates me. I looked up, intrigued. The man in the doorway was tall, as all Moroi were, with chestnut brown hair, and green eyes. He was cute, in an American kind of way, and his expensive wool coat belied his wealth. All in all, a nice package.

Ah, but he was taken. I watched as his gaze went to Rose, and a look of…longing, I guess, crossed his face. In a moment, I had the story. Being psychic is handy sometimes. Adrian adored Rose, loved her, but it was unrequited. She loved Dimitri, as she always had. She'd had a relationship with Adrian, but it hadn't worked out. How could it, when he was addicted to her, and she didn't love him? But the love had never really gone away for Adrian, and even now, whenever he saw Rose, he couldn't control the uprising of emotions he had for her. He was angry, frustrated and utterly obsessed with her. It was saddening, and I felt for him, especially as Rose had no idea. He lied to her, told her he was over her.

What a convoluted little group they had here. I glanced at Eddie-he was still torn up over the death of his best friend- Mason, was it? And he was pulled towards a girl, a Moroi called…Mia? Christian worried he wasn't good enough for Lissa, and Lissa was just happy. And Rose and Dimitri? I couldn't get a hold on them. It was almost as if they weren't a part of the world as much as the others were.

I stopped. I wasn't usually this nosy, but, well, they had such strong emotional currents, for want of a better word, that they drew me in. It wasn't like I had any control over my inner sense-it came and went as it wanted to, usually at the most inconvenient times. I looked down at my shoes, feeling strange and violated. I never liked knowing what people felt. It opened up a whole new can of worms I was never ready to deal with. I hadn't asked around about my powers. Most of the time I pretended they didn't exist, that I was normal, but I never would be, not with the life I'd been given.

Adrian glanced at me sharply, his eyes narrowing as he focused on something…me. "You!" He barked. "Who are you?" I jumped.

"Adrian, she's my new Guardian! What are you doing?" Lissa reprimanded, face stern.

"Her aura, it's weird. Who are you?" He asked again, softer this time.

"I'm Zanna Asher. The Guardian sent to protect Princess Vasilisa." I told him formally. I always fell back on formality when I felt threatened.

"But…" He said, looking lost and kind of insane. "Why is your aura black?"

**A/N DUMDUMDUM! What's going on? You'll have to review to find out. And, by the way, ignore my review that says it's from me. My best friend decided to review using my account. :S Thanks, midget!**


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N Bonjour! I'm back again, still sadly lacking in reviews. **** But I am extremely excited because Richelle Mead was talking about Last Sacrifice, and I cannot wait! However, if Rose and Dimitri don't end up back together, I will be in tears. **

**Disclaimer: Do I look like Richelle Mead? No? That's because I'm not her, therefore, I don't own VA. See?**

"What?" Rose asked, sounding shocked. "Adrian, you said only shadow-kissed people have black auras. She isn't shadow-kissed. Are you?" She said to me.

I shook my head. "No, I'm not." I knew why my aura was black: it didn't mean I had to tell Adrian.

Adrian looked nonplussed. "Look, Liss, she's dangerous. How can we have her around you, if we don't know what she is?"

That pissed me off. "I know why my aura's that colour. There's probably gold and silver in there somewhere too, isn't there?" I said, my voice tight with anger. I was tired of being treated like a freak. I didn't have to be here; in fact I'd rather be back home.

Adrian looked surprised. "Well, yes. How'd you know that?"

"Other people told me. There are humans who can see auras too. The black means I pull energy into myself, and that I have long-term grudges. The gold and silver indicates psychic powers." I recited dispassionately. I'd been told this many times-New Age fanatics can be very persistent. "So, no, I'm not dangerous. My aura is just a little different." All this rubbish about auras was making my head spin. I'd heard the whole, "Your aura is strange!" thing before, and it worried me. What could it mean? What I didn't like, though, was his attitude.

"Fine, so my aura's weird. Is that any reason to be rude, and to tell the princess I'm dangerous when you know nothing about me?" Adrian started to sputter. I ignored him and carried on. "No, it does not. How would you like it?" He opened his mouth again. "That was a rhetorical question, you idiot! If you don't know what that is, look it up in a dictionary! Being rich and royal doesn't give you the right to yell at me!" My rant over, I glared at him, and pouted, my childish behaviour earning a laugh from our audience. At home they know not to cross me! These people…

Adrian gulped. Oops, maybe I went too far. I bet my eyes are flashing. They always do when I'm angry. "I'm sorry." He told me, trying to look sincere. "I didn't mean to upset you."

"Well, you failed miserably in that respect, didn't you?" I muttered.

"Look, it's not my fault. Spirit makes me go really odd sometimes. It only happens about once a month, you just kinda got in the way of it." He gave me a cheeky smile. "Sorry!"

O_kay_. This is going brilliantly. We have an ex-Strigoi, one of the last remaining Dragomirs, someone whose parents went Strigoi, and an insane Spirit user. Oh, this is going well. Very well. I was on the verge of throwing my hands in the hair, and telling them that I couldn't do this, when something flashed across my vision. I knew what that meant, and it never boded well for me. My head started to hurt, and I stumbled across the room, tripping and ending up on the floor. I heard the crash of my body falling down, and the murmurs of concern as everybody crowded around me. My head in my hands, I pressed my fingers to my eyes and desperately tried to think of _anything_ else.

It didn't work. It never worked. The premonition, the knowledge would come and there was nothing I could do to stop it.

My eyes swam underneath my palms, and images started to rush through my mind. A little boy, laughing, runs across the pavement as I try to catch him. I didn't know this child; I didn't even know anyone who looked like him, especially as he didn't look Moroi, or dhampir. A hooded stranger swarmed up from the darkness as I shrunk backwards. A smile, mysterious and frightening. _What did it mean?_ They never made sense, the visions, and I figured them out too late.

But one thing was for sure-I couldn't leave the Court until I figured out what was going on. It wouldn't do me any good, nor Lissa and Rose.

These visions weren't regular, and they weren't something I had often-usually I just "sensed" stuff, without the blinding headache and general clumsiness. I blinked, attempting to restore my sight. I sat up, and blinked even more furiously. I felt so self conscious, lying on the floor. Everyone was staring at me, looking horrified.

"Are you okay? What just happened?" Lissa questioned. I pulled my knees against my chest, and looked down at my feet.

"Could I have a drink, please?" I asked quietly, burying my head into the tops of my knees, away form the penetrating gazes. I felt, rather than saw Lissa nod and say, "Of course!" I heard rustling, and the soft click of cupboard doors opening, and a cold can of Coke was pressed into my hand. I took a long gulp, and finished it in a few minutes. I set the can down on the table to my left, one of those pointless, but decorative little things. "I'm sorry for scaring you. That doesn't happen very often, and it shouldn't happen again any time soon." I gave a shaky laugh. "I bet your all thinking, 'What the fuck just happened'. Well, that would be a premonition." Raising my head a little, I could see the expressions of astonishment spreading across their faces. Only Dimitri and Rose looked the least shocked. "Oh, did Yelena forget to mention I'm psychic?"

They all nodded, Christian's mouth slightly agape. I gave them a twisted smile. "Well congratulations, you just got your first view of how it ruins my life." I heard Adrian give a sigh of relief, and turned, in order to give him an indignant glare.

"Thank god, it wasn't my fault. I don't think I could have taken your death on my conscience." He sounded very happy about this.

"Oh, you have a conscience?" Christian quipped, and we all laughed, releasing some of the tension in the room. "Well, I think we're going to have to see the queen. Get her to explain what the hell's going on. She forces you over here, when it's clear you didn't want to go, then neglects to tell us about your…special gifts." I was very grateful to him at this moment. I wanted the chance to question the bitch, and to find out what on earth her plan was.

Adrian gave another grin as I slowly pulled myself up. "Is anyone else finding her accent really sexy? Especially when she yells." We all looked at him. "What?" He defended himself. "I'm allowed to find her accent attractive." 

"Adrian, I'm right here. Don't talk about me as if I'm not here." I told him, completely baffled by the comment about my accent. It wasn't even that posh or nice sounding.

Rose snorted. "Adrian, she's got a boyfriend. Don't start moving in on her." How did she miss the pain-filled glances he always shot her way? Dimitri certainly didn't; he watched Adrian like a hawk. It didn't seem like Rose to be so unobservant; perhaps she was ignoring them subconsciously, unable, or unwilling to deal with the fact that Adrian was very much still in love with her. It was very odd-I'd been here all of three hours, and I figure it out.

I shook my head. "Do you mind if I change?" I asked. Lissa shook hers. My clothes were fine, but I needed something extra comfy-my head still hurt, and I was pretty sure I'd bruised most of my body when I'd fallen down. They were still giving me wary looks, as if I'd do it again any second now.

I moved carefully over to the door, and practically fell into my room, dragging out a pair of skinny jeans, and an extremely oversized purple jumper. Discarding my dress, I dragged them on, and shoved my feet back into my converse.

As soon as I came back in, they headed to the door. Lissa behind Eddie, and flanked by Rose and Dimitri. I took the back position, feeling naked without my stake. "Uh, guys?" I said, my voice hesitant. "Do you have my stakes?" Rose slapped her forehead.

"Yeah. Oh god, I'm so sorry, I completely forgot!" She pulled one out of her holster and handed it to me. "I always have about three. Use this one for now."

It felt strange in my hand, used as I was to mine, which were made for my smaller hands, and it also seemed to thrum with a little more energy. I looked at it curiously. Rose caught my look and smiled. "Liss charges them with Spirit." I nodded, feeling impressed, and muttered my thanks.

Feeling more confident with my weapon in hand, I followed the others out of the building, the Moroi between the Guardians, as it always was, I thought bitterly. We were headed to the queen's quarters, and I couldn't help but feel a sense of trepidation that made me shiver, pulling the overlong sleeves of my jumper around my fists. What information was I about to uncover?

**A/N Thus concludes the seventh chapter! What do you think? Please review!**


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N And I'm back again. What's going to happen? Only I know. Mwahahahaha! I have recently discovered Kpop, and cannot get SHINee out of my head. I blame my friend who introduced them to me…**

**Why I'm telling you this, I have no idea…**

**Disclaimer: I'm not Richelle Mead. If I was, I'd presumably have enough money to stalk my favourite bands. As I don't, I'm not her, so I DO NOT own Vampire Academy! *Sob***

We traipsed out of the building, our Guardian formation still holding, as we headed to one of the fancier buildings. All the buildings in the Court were ornate and beautiful, but seeing as this was the queen's…palace, if you will, well, it was even more beautiful. I was told that the previous queen, Tatiana, had been just as much of a bitch as Yelena, but I wasn't sure anyone could be. Plus, Tatiana was murdered, and I don't like to speak ill of the dead. They could come back and haunt me…

Her building was a three storey, made out of some kind of grey stone, and trimmed with what looked like slate. The roof was pointed in a gothic style, and had little towers, and mullioned windows. It was pretty similar to a lot of the castles back home, except you could kind of tell this was a reproduction-the lines were too precise. It was lovely, apart from the gargoyles stationed on the roof that stared down creepily, their grotesque faces twisted into horrific expressions. These ones were particularly gruesome, but then, they are meant to ward off evil. Being the queen meant you were targeted by Strigoi a lot, so I guess the architect had decided that the monarch would need as much protection as they could get.

Nobody else seemed to be staring at the Court buildings as much as me. Huh. I guess they're all used to it, living here. Hopefully I wouldn't become like that-immune to everything but my Moroi, as all the other Guardians seemed to be. I trudged along, trying to stay alert, but my long plane ride was catching up with me, and I was very tired. I would be awake enough to question that bitch of a queen, though. I'd make sure. We (well, Lissa) pressed the intercom button, and waited for the response. Lissa dealt with the questions, while we Guardians stood there looking tough. Christian and Adrian looked faintly amused by this. The doors opened, and we were greeted by two massive Guardians, both men, with bulging muscles bigger than me. They looked almost identical in looks, scarily so. Their eyebrows raised in unison, and we took that as an invitation to come in.

We walked in, and were immediately assaulted by a wave of redness. Now I like red, but this was too much. The room was overly perfumed, stifling, and we were only in the hallway! The room looked like a cross between a boudoir and an opium den. I was terrified to see what her actual receiving room looked like. I'd assumed she was just a cold-ass bitch, not that she was running a brothel. That was the kind of information I didn't need to know. Adrian sidled up to me. "Is it your first time in here?" I nodded, my eyes huge and glassy. He gave me a sympathetic look. "It's kind of frightening, the first time. Prepare yourself." I nodded again, expecting to walk in on an orgy or something similar.

We didn't walk in on an orgy, but it may has well have been. The huge, double doors were viciously thrown open by Creepy Twins, and this time, I was hit with a wave of purpled-redness. The room, which was large, and could have been beautiful if the light was let in, was covered with damasked red and purple wallpaper, and chaise longues were dotted around the room. On top of these lay men and women, all in varying stages of undress, all around their mid twenties, like me. They all looked woozy and unfocused, and the stench of blood and sweat was thick, beneath the vast amounts of incense. I wrinkled my nose. Ew. Queen Yelena has a bunch of blood whores? The idea was disgusting, but the proof was right in front of me. And she had the audacity to accuse me of leading Alex on? Adrian caught my eye and mouthed "I told you so."

I attempted to find Yelena, but it was impossible through the smoky haze of the incense one girl had just lit. However, everyone else had moved purposely forward, and I followed, trying not to inhale the incense smoke. I failed, and started to choke, earning a confused look from one of the men. Suddenly, the smoke cleared, and I was at the far side of the room, where Yelena sat, a pale, dark haired man kneeling at her feet, staring adoringly up at her. I could see why. I might not like her, but I couldn't deny that Yelena was beautiful. Her rich, dark hair was almost black and contrasted well with her fair skin. Her cheekbones were slanted becomingly across her face, and her huge grey-blue eyes drew you to her. If her lips were just a bit to thin, and her jawline a little weak, you didn't notice because of her commanding presence.

She stood up, smoothed down her silky black skirt, and wiped the blood from her chin on the back of her hand. Ew. At her full height, she dwarfed most women, me especially, and she had the slim figure coveted by most of the media brainwashed women. "Lissa!" She exclaimed. "What a wonderful surprise!"

Lissa gave a courteous nod, and returned the embrace Yelena thrust upon her, kissing both cheeks delicately. "Yes, it's lovely to see you too. We're here because my new Guardian came, and well, you seem to have forgotten to tell us a few things about her. I'm sure it's nothing that can't be sorted out easily enough, and I know you didn't do it deliberately." She was good. I could never be that polite. I was really tempted to wave at Yelena, but then the guy she'd just sucked on gave me a questioning glance, and I suddenly felt the need dissipate. Oh god, this is just too weird.

Yelena ignored that comment when she spotted Adrian. "Adrian!" She said enthusiastically. "My darling cousin! How are you?"

Adrian looked as if he wanted to laugh hysterically and run from the room at the same time. "I've been good, cousin. Uh, I'm only here to accompany Lissa though, so you might want to answer her questions first." A flash of irritation crossed Yelena's face, but she covered it, and swept out a hand.

"Well, of course. Anything for you, my dear." I didn't miss how she completely ignored Christian, who, being an Ozera, was royal too. I looked at him, and saw the undisguised anger on his face. He didn't like the queen either. I looked at the Rose. She didn't seem too worried, but the faintest expression of unease was on her face. Eddie and Dimitri just looked stoic, as a good Guardian should. "What is it you want to know?"

Lissa smiled. "Well, how come you forgot to mention Zanna's psychic abilities? They seem quite important. Plus, I thought it was agreed that we wouldn't take someone who was happy where they were. And seeing as she almost collapsed from a premonition, I would have liked to have been warned." She allowed the slightest amount of reproach in her voice at this point. Nothing that could be pinpointed, but it could make you feel a little guilty. Was she using compulsion?

Yelena gave a tinkling laugh at this. "Oh, I am sorry! I thought I mentioned it. Well, it doesn't matter, she's here now, and you know. And I wanted you to have the best Guardian I could find. She might be a bit of a slut, what with the way she's carrying on with her Moroi, but there's no denying she's good at what she does." She gave me a malicious grin at that. I was so angry, I could feel myself ready to leap at her, to smack that stupid grin off her face, but I couldn't move. I looked at Lissa and Adrian, both concentrating on me. I was under compulsion. Great. Rose looked at me, her eyes pleading with me frantically not to carry on. I rolled my eyes, and attempted to give a nod. I was released, and Lissa spoke again.

She gave a shocked, breathless little giggle. "Your majesty, I wouldn't call her a slut! She seems perfectly nice to me. Please don't insult her. I know you would never give me a Guardian you didn't think the best of. That would be an insult to _me._" Touche Lissa, touché. That was clever-if the queen said anything else horrible about me, she was admitting she'd given Lissa a Guardian she didn't trust. How I hated Court politics. I liked how Lissa was manipulating the queen, though. That was fun.

Yelena's eyes tightened, showing the very fine lines around her eyes that belied her age. "Of course not. I would never use a sub-standard Guardian to protect a Dragomir, especially not when you're pregnant." I almost growled. Guardians are not objects! And she calls me a slut, when she has millions of blood whores just lying about! This time, however, I kept my poker face on, earning a respectful grin from Rose.

Lissa smiled again. "Well, I'm glad that's sorted. I'm happy you didn't mean to hide things from me! It was just a bit of a worry, Zanna falling like that." 

The queen snorted. "She should have better manners than that. Really, Lissa, you're too kind. Well, I guess you're off. Are you sure you won't have a taste of him first?" She asked, indicating the lovesick boy at her feet. In Moroi society, this was obscene, being so open about the feeders, but Yelena didn't seem to care. Power appears to have gone to her head.

Lissa shook her head a little too fast. "Uh, no. I, uh, already fed today. Goodbye, your majesty." She curtseyed, and we followed her example. Turning together, we practically legged it out of the place, and I could have sworn I head Yelena cackling at this. Once at the doors, the two massive Guardians opened the official entrance out, in an ominous silence. We got out, and started to move quietly across the Court. Once we were far enough away, I started retching.

"Oh my god! That place is freaky!" I gasped. "How is she allowed to get away with it, the bitch?"

Adrian tried to control his chuckles, but in the end started to guffaw, bent over with his hands on his knees. "Oh, god. You should have seen your face! That was hilarious! I did warn you."

Rose giggled, and pretty soon, everyone was at it, even Eddie. I tried to look offended. "Hello, I'm allowed to be angry. She insulted me in front of everybody! But, dear god, that room. Oh, the images!" I clutched my head, and that sent everyone into a fresh set of hysterics. "I mean, what does she do in there?"

Christian shuddered. "I don't think I want to know, actually." 

We all agreed. "No, not really." I told him, then started cringing again. The images!

"Come on, guys." Said Lissa. "let's go to that café, the one that Mia's dad used to work at." She turned to me. "Mia's a friend of ours. You'll like her." I decided not to mention I already kind of knew who she was, from their psychic readings.

I gave a smirk. "Fine with me. As long as they have caffeine. I don't think I'm going to want to sleep tonight…" They smirked back, and we walked on, sniggering about the queen's taste in men. That boy had been kind of girly looking…

**A/N There we go! What d'you think? Please review! I kind of feel guilty, using the name Yelena for such a horrible character, because my Russian Conversation teacher's called Elena and she's really nice. I take Russian at College, by the way. I could have had a pen friend called Dimitri, but nooooo, my friend got in there first! And she doesn't even like Vampire Academy…**

**Shout outs to: Abbie, my anonymous reviewer**

**talkygirl**

**bella roza913**

**MaggieChauvin**

**And, of course, Candigal.**

**Thanks for the support, guys! **


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N Hello! I am extremely tired, mostly because I had to cram an entire report into one night, but it's okay, because I'm now on a weeks holiday! So hopefully I can get a few chapters up. We'll see…**

**Disclaimer: I own many things, most that don't really enrich my life at all (cougholdmathsbookscough), but Vampire Academy is not one of them. I own all of my characters, however.**

Coffee sounded really good right now. Coffee smothered in whipped cream with extra calories even more so. Which was why I was glad that the café we were in was pretty much like Starbucks, but without the iconic Starbucks sign. We were all squashed onto two tables in the corner. I was kind of sad we weren't by a window. I like people watching.

Lissa seemed put out that she couldn't drink full coffee, staring sadly at Christians Latte. Rose, noticing this, told her she was being silly, especially because she'd never been a big coffee drinker. To which Lissa replied, it wasn't the coffee she missed, it was the fact that it was prohibited. I understood. I didn't like being told I couldn't drink something either.

Christian snorted. "Liss, you know why you can't drink coffee. Do you really want the baby to come out a caffeine addict? I don't."

"Hey!" I said, insulted. "A lot of my friends are caffeine addicts, and they're perfectly fine." Cass practically exists on Coke. I swear she'd die without it…

"Yeah, but a baby who's addicted to caffeine isn't normal." Adrian pointed out.

"Alright, that's true." I conceded, and went back to my drink. Mmm… White Chocolate Mocha…

Lissa stared at my cream-drenched drink. "It's not fair!" She whined. "I want one." Christian sighed, and put his arm around her.

"I'm sorry Liss, but you can't. I take full responsibility. You can even punch me if you want too." She did, weakly, and he laughed, pulling her towards him so he could kiss her. It stung, seeing them able to flaunt their relationship like that. I wasn't allowed to. For God's sake, I'd been dragged away from my home so I couldn't do that. A huge wave of longing for Alex washed over me. I was good at compartmentalizing, but not that good. I wanted to go home. It had barely been a day and I was desperate to go home. I was getting pathetic.

The door of the café swung open, letting a blast of cold air in. I looked up to see a tiny Moroi woman make her way over to our table. She was smaller than me, and that was saying something. Her hair was that golden blond coveted by bottle-blondes the world over, and she wore a cute blue dress.

"Mia!" Rose exclaimed happily. So this was Mia? "How are you?"

"Good, good." She replied. "I was just training with the Guardians again. I'm getting better! I actually took down Guardian Johnson today!" She looked really pleased with herself.

"Amazing!" Lissa joined in. "Well, I'm glad you're here. Mia, I'd like to introduce you to Zanna. Zanna, Mia." I stood up and shook her hand. It was a weird sensation, towering over someone. I'm used to being dwarfed by tall people.

"It's nice to meet someone smaller than me for once." I joked. "I'm sure we'll get along fine."

"Yes, I'm sure." She replied, smiling at me pleasantly. She sat down in the seat Eddie got out for her, murmuring her thanks. Adrian offered to get her a drink, seeing as he was "Gagging for a new one" as he put it.

"So, we just went to see the queen." Rose started. "She was delightful, as usual."

Mia's eyes widened. "Oh, I pity you." She breathed. She turned to face me. "Was this your first time?" I nodded sadly. I was still mentally scarred. "Oh, I am so glad I'm not you. She terrifies me. She's so…creepy."

"I totally agree with you. She's also a nasty bitch." I said, reaching for one of the cakes on the table.

"And rude." Rose chimed in.

"Mentally unstable" Said Adrian.

"As if you're one to talk about mental instability." Christian laughed. "But she is practically insane."

"Doesn't she actually have a history of periods of extended mental illness?" Dimitri put in. We all stared at him shock.

"Really?" I blurted out. "How'd she become queen then?"

"And how did you find that out?" Rose asked. He shrugged.

"I've got contacts, you know that." He told us. We stared at him incredulously again.

"Well, I still want to know how she got her skinny arse on the throne." I grumbled. It was suspicious. How could someone with a history of mental illness get on the throne? It didn't seem right, when there were plenty of (relatively) sane candidates.

"Compulsion?" Suggested Mia.

"Sexual favours?" Adrian answered with that. Thanks for the mental images, Adrian! 

"Neither." Lissa interrupted. "She was always going to be queen, apparently. They fixed it, because she was the only one good enough to rule."

"Uh huh, about that. What psycho thought that woman could rule?" I asked. Surely no one was that stupid… I mean, I'd be a better queen than her, and I was a dhampir, not to mention I can't be trusted with power. Don't let me get into the story of what happened when I got put in charge of security at Chloe's birthday party…

"Well, she's very intelligent, and she's prepared to do most things others wouldn't I guess they thought she'd be strong enough to lead the Moroi forward." Lissa said thoughtfully.

"As opposed to what? Lying around doing nothing and fucking an endless amount of blood whores? Oh wait, that is what she does. I think that kind of failed, didn't it?" I said, my eyebrow raised.

Rose laughed. "Yeah, and to be fair, I actually think Tatiana was better than her. And I hated Tatiana." A flash of fury crossed her face, and I knew it was because of the horrible situation Tatiana had put her in. Rose had been charged with her murder, falsely, and she'd almost been put to death.

"It is very odd." Adrian agreed. "I mean, she doesn't have any limits at all. I'm not exactly a model of the perfect citizen either, but I'm better than her. It's like she doesn't know the difference between right and wrong."

"She's a psychopath?" I asked, curiously.

Lissa shook her head. "No, it's more like she's…amoral. She just doesn't think like we do. It's unnerving. And she's really interested in the baby." She said worriedly, her hand unconsciously going to her stomach. My gaze dropped to her hand. She didn't _look_ pregnant yet, but I couldn't exactly say that I was an expert on pregnancy. The way to _get_ pregnant, however, you could say I had a lot of experience in that…

I could feel my forehead crinkling. "Why? She can't be that much of a baby person. At least, I hope she's not." The queen just gets weirder and weirder…

Lissa bit her lip. "It's not like that. I can't explain it. It's more like…an interest in the baby as a…science experiment, almost. Christian, Rose, you get where I'm coming from, don't you?" She looked at them.

Christian nodded. "It's creepy." He told me, tightening the arm he had around Lissa. "I don't like it. It's not her baby-I don't think she should be this interested." This was getting very interesting. Perhaps I wouldn't be as bored as I thought.

"Rose, tell her about that time the queen came up to you." Lissa said. We all perked up. Everyone loves a good story.

Rose smiled secretively, and sat up straighter. "Well, it was a cold, stormy night, and as I walked up to the queen's crypt-" Dimitri gave her a disbelieving look and Lissa nudged her.

"Tell the truth, Rose!"

"Alright, I was only going to make the story a little more interesting. I'm allowed to exaggerate. It's my story, Liss!" We all looked at her again, impatiently waiting for the story to go on. "Okay, well, one time, after the queen had finished speaking to Liss, she asked me to stay behind, so I did. Liss waited outside with Dimitri and Christian, and the queen got all…intense. She told me that I _had _to keep Lissa safe, or she'd bring up the charges from…before again." She looked haunted, and Dimitri put a comforting arm around her. She snuggled more deeply into his embrace, taking strength from it, and carried on. "I told her she had no grounds, and that, anyway, I'd do my best to protect Lissa because she was my best friend. She gave me a dirty look, and then said, 'That child is of the utmost importance, do you understand?' I kind of just backed away, and said I did. As I left she started muttering odd things about how the baby was really special, and something about a prophecy."

"O…kay." I responded. "Well, we all knew the queen was wacko. This just proves it. Has she mentioned anything else about it?"

Rose shook her head. "Nope. I think she was just being scary. I'm pretty sure it's nothing."

If it was nothing, why had a sense of foreboding suddenly crept over me? And why did I want to leave as fast as I could? I knew I shouldn't have come…

**A/N Sorry it's so short, but I felt I had to leave it there. So what's going on? Well, you'll have to carry on reading and reviewing to find out… Mwahahahaha *cough splutter* I'm not very good at the evil thing…**

**Shout outs:**

**Candigal**

**MaggieChauvin**

**miti1**

**talkygirl**

**Abbie**

**Thanks for the love, guys! (It makes my world go round ****)**


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N I'm baaaaaaaaaaaack. My holiday went too quick, and I've discovered that Richelle Mead will not be coming to England for the Last Sacrifice tour. I am displeased muchly. I also cannot stop obsessively watching/listening to random Korean boybands. Yes, I know it's weird. But they're good…**

**Oh, well, at least it'll be Christmas soon…**

**Disclaimer: You know the drill. I. Do. Not. Own. Vampire. Academy.**

I sighed, staring down at my nails. They had been perfectly painted with a lovely sparkly nail polish, but now they were jagged, chipped and encrusted with dirt. The one time I do a manicure properly, and it gets ruined… Is it my lot in life to get stuck with crap?

I dropped the spade I'd been holding, and wiped my nails on my jeans. It didn't do any good. I sighed again, harder this time. Rose looked up at me. "What's wrong with you?" She asked.

"My nails…" I said mournfully. "They're not pretty any more." I told her, showing her the remains of my nail polish. She chuckled.

"Well, what did you expect? We're guardians; nothing ever stays neat with us." Did I detect a hint of bitterness in her tone? It seemed unlikely, what with how much she appeared to like her job. Her hands, clutching her own spade, were a tad rough looking, but not as bad as they could have been. She was really quite beautiful, when you looked at her. Not in the super skinny super-model way, or the airy-fairy innocent way Lissa was. She was more earthy, with her darker skin and eyes, and her gorgeous almost-black hair. I was nothing like that. I was pale, with sharp green eyes, wavy red hair and a pert mouth. I was also tiny and curvy, something which annoyed me. Couldn't I be one thing?

Anyway, I'm rambling. The reason for this digging of earth was, of course, Lissa. We were, after all, here to do her bidding, and she wanted her garden replanted. She said she would do it herself, but Christian refused to let her bend over or do anything strenuous. Go figure. So instead, she'd begged me, Rose and Eddie to do it. Dimitri had gone on some Court business, apparently. It sucked-he was big and tall, I'm short and not that big, who's going to be the better digger?

I'd been at Court for two weeks now, and was slowly acclimatising. No, it wasn't as bad as I'd feared, but I still couldn't shake the feeling that something awful was going on. To be honest, it was all rather annoying, and I wanted it to go away. Lissa was a good employer, and she was considerate. Indeed, she'd given me a few days off, starting from tomorrow, because Alex would be arriving, as he'd promised. I was very glad. I might of settled into a routine, but I missed everyone, and especially Alex. I don't like to be away from the people I'm close to. It felt like I hadn't seen my parents in years, or Chloe, or Cassie. And I really wanted Alex. If I was totally honest with myself, I was also kind of horny. Not that I'd admit that, because Dom would make fun, and Alex would take advantage of my weakened state. Suffice to say, I was very ready to see everyone.

I picked up the spade, and started digging again. "Rose," I said conversationally. She looked up at me questioningly. "Why does Lissa even want us to do it? Doesn't she have gardeners?"

"She likes to heal plants, you see. With her powers." She clarified. "And she won't let the gardeners near the garden after what they did last time." I gave her a curious look. "They dug up the wrong plants, and killed her flowers. And they wouldn't agree with her when she told them she was going to fix the dead plants." I nodded. Okay, do not murder plants…

I pushed the spade in deeper, until I hit something hard. I huffed; not another bloody tree root. I squatted down, _so_ elegantly (not) and wiped away some of the dirt. It looked like something was embedded in the earth. I got rid of more earth. I could see more clearly now, and the object in the ground was very interesting. It was about thirty centimetres long, and ten centimetres wide. It appeared to be made out of some kind of metal, the dull sheen catching the light as I pulled it from the ground. Pewter, it looked like. Odd-why would a stick made of pewter be in Lissa's garden?

"Rose?" I called, wanting her opinion on my find. She glanced up, and seeing my puzzled look, quickly came over.

"What is it?" She asked, sounding commanding and in charge. "Is it dangerous?"

"I…don't know." I told her, holding out my find. She took it from my hands and examined it gingerly. She ran her hand over its puckered surface. "Wait!" I told her, my hand on the object. "Aren't those runes?"

Rose shrugged helplessly. "I wouldn't know-I didn't tend to listen to my history teachers…" Well, fat lot of help she was. I took it off her again.

"Well, I've got a friend that knows practically everything there is to know about Ancient stuff; maybe she can help. And one of my other friends is a jewellery maker. She could help too." I help the whatever-the-hell-it-was up to the light. It shimmered a little, something it shouldn't have done, as it was so filthy. I nearly dropped it. How could I have missed the waves of magic radiating off it?

Rose watched me, eyes wide. "What do you think we should do?" I shrugged, then tightened my hand around the thing.

"I'll look after it. I think it's been charmed. I'll ask around, see what information I can glean about it. Do you want to tell Lissa about it?" This was so weird. I didn't understand what the hell it was for, and we didn't even know how long it'd been in the garden. That was even more worrying.

Oh fuck. I didn't have the time for this! Alex and everyone would be here by tomorrow, and I'd promised myself I'd focus only on them, not how I was feeling here.

Rose thought for a minute. "Leave it to me. I'll tell her when I think it's okay. If you could find something out about it, that'd be great." She said determinedly. "For now, we better get this done. If we do it quickly, we get more time off. Don't you want to prepare for your boyfriend?"

I nodded enthusiastically, and she smiled as I eagerly started thrusting the spade back into the dirt, shoving the metal thing in my back pocket. "Yes. I really do. But it's not only my boyfriend coming."

"Oh no?" I shook my head brightly.

"My parents, my best friend and Dom are all coming. Cass and Ariana couldn't get time off and I'm not sure what V was doing…" I was working diligently now. Rose seemed interested.

"That's a lot of people." She stated.

"Yeah, but I haven't seen them in weeks. I miss them." I pouted, sticking my bottom lip out. She chuckled, and we stayed in silence for the next hour or so, desperate to finish.

The next morning I was up bright and early, ready to see everyone. Lissa had enlisted one of the Court Guardians to fill in with me, and I sped over to the Court landing strip. I waited with bated breath as the plane landed smoothly, clutching the necklace I had on. Eventually, the plane touched down, and the entrance opened.

I was the only one waiting for anyone today, and I had to restrain myself from running to the plane. At last, I saw Dom come down the steps, the bronze buttons of his military jacket catching the light, and the buckles of his boots flashing. I smiled. Next, my parents, bickering as usual-they never could get along properly. Chloe stepped out, her gold hair blowing in the wind, one hand shading her eyes, the other clutching a black, shiny patent case. Finally, Alex appeared, his untidy black hair peeking out underneath a fedora hat, his green shirt casually untucked from his worn jeans. He looked gorgeous. My smile became even wider.

They were here.

**A/N Hee hee. Happy Hallowe'en, people! Please review! *Begs***

**Shout Outs:**

**Abbie**

**MaggieChauvin**

**talkygirl**

**CandiGal**

**Thanks for the love! **

**Oh, and by the way, if anybody reads Harry Potter fanfiction, maybe you could check out my oneshot about Dumbledore. Just a thought…**


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N And I'm baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaack! My internet died, so I couldn't post. Then my plot bunny went missing, but I found him, so everything's okay now. I've named him Lee Jinki Junior…**

**Oh, I'd advise listening to "It's the Fear", by Within Temptation for this chapter. It'll give you an indicator of what's to come…**

**Disclaimer: *Sings to tune of Lithium* I don't own VA…**

I strolled over to the runway, taking my time. I might be desperate to see them, but I have pride, and dignity! What am I saying? Of course I don't! I sped up, and got to them in about five seconds.

As I arrived, Ariana was making her way down the steps, her high heeled boots clicking down the steps. She also held a case, hers black leather. They were all here. I resisted the urge to squeal, and crept up behind Alex. "Hey." I said. He turned around, and jumped in surprise. I smirked at him.

"When did you get here?" He asked.

"I was here the whole time." I told him. He looked slightly disgruntled. I shook my head. "Don't pout baby, the wind will change, and you'll be stuck like that." He grinned at me.

"Well, I didn't see you." He replied, crossing his arms. I started to feel better. I'd missed this-the childish banter, the comforting feeling of knowing you could be yourself completely around someone. I wasn't that much of a people person, and being alone with no one I knew was uncomfortable for me.

I threw my arms around him, and buried my face in his chest (I don't even reach his shoulder), inhaling his scent. He always smelt of his expensive aftershave. He pulled me even closer, and soon I was overwhelmed by the feeling of being home. I stood on my tiptoes to whisper in his ear. "Missed you." I kissed the skin behind his ear, and went back to squeezing the life out of him. He returned my hug full-force.

"Missed you too." He murmured, kissing the top of my head. It was then that I noticed he wasn't wearing a coat. I pulled back.

"Alex? Where the hell is your coat? You're gonna freeze, you idiot!" I yelled at him. He looked shifty.

"Uh… I… don't know?" He responded, looking guilty. I heard a laugh behind me.

"Don't worry, Zanna. I've got it. We all know my brother's a complete twat sometimes." I turned to Ariana, and she winked at me. "Once you've detached yourself from your girlfriend, you can have your coat." She said, holding up his leather jacket.

"I only forgot it because I was so excited to see you." Alex said defensively. I snorted.

"Don't try that one on me. And you're still an idiot." He gave me puppy dog eyes. I patted his hand. "Aw, poor baby…" I moved to go, and he grabbed my hand. I started again, dragging him with me as I went to greet my parents, Dom and Chloe.

"Hello, dear acquaintances." I drawled. "How delightful to see you all." Chloe shook her head, and my father raised his eyebrows.

"When did we become acquaintances, darling?" My mother asked, sounding faintly amused.

"Yes, Marissa, I was wondering that too. I was under the impression we were rather more than acquaintances." My father responded.

Dom simply gave a disbelieving huff, crossed his arms, and turned away from me.

"Of course you are, guys! I luvvvvvvvvvvvvvv you!" I squealed, and, amazingly, managed to grab every one of them into a group hug. I'm not really sure how I did that. I think Alex got pulled in too. I think…

Soon, everyone was laughing, and my happiness level went up even more. I was at my best when surrounded by people I loved; then I was bouncy, a little hyper, and full of laughter. We all converged towards the exit, Alex's arm wrapped around my waist. We got to the gate, where I'd encountered the rude prick, and presented ID. This time, there was no rudeness, because they wouldn't dare be mean to a Moroi…

I led them to the guest house they'd all be staying in, noting that it was actually quite posh. However, there was a surprise waiting for us as we entered the house.

Sitting on the one of the comfy chairs, legs stretched out, was V, Alex's cousin, who we'd all thought wasn't coming. Someone else unexpected was here, too. Adrian…

"What are you two doing here?" I said stupidly, confused. V straightened up, and smiled. Being cousins, he and Alex looked alike. They didn't look like twins, or anything, but they were similar. V was slightly taller, and a bit more well built. He had a less friendly demeanour than Alex did, and his eyes were a startling green, a sharp contrast to Alex's warm brown eyes. His black hair was longer, and always looked ruffled. He usually dressed well, preferring shirts and ties, with tailored blazers over casual jeans. He had the same straight nose and high cheekbones as Alex and Ariana. If you looked at all three of them together, you'd probably swear they were triplets.

"I came to visit you." He said. "You're one of the very few people I enjoy talking too, and I knew Adrian lived here. I figured I'd kill two birds with one stone. So, hello." He told me. So V and Adrian were friends? I hadn't known that…

Alex gave a V a weird look. "And you couldn't have come over with us?"

V shrugged. "You know I hate the Court planes."

"Still…" Alex replied. "You couldn't have told us?"

"Wouldn't have been a surprise then, would it?" V said, pulling on a shirt cuff. "Anyway, does it matter? We're all here now, so we might as well do something nice. I vote we go to a restaurant. Once you've sorted everything out, of course." He turned to Adrian. "Would you like to come, Cousin?"

Adrian considered this, and as he did so, I began to see the resemblance to Alex. They both had similar features, but Adrian had a mischievous look to his face. Ariana didn't look much like Adrian, and V's features were more classical. I have to say though, the Ivashkovs are an uncommonly pretty family.

"Yes, I will. If that's okay with everyone else." We all shrugged and said yes. After the little incident with my aura, I'd begun to like him a little more. He was just a little over bouncy, but that was mainly to hide his true feelings, and partially because of how Spirit affected him.

"Well, that's done then." I announced to the room. "Anyone got any idea where we want to go?"

"I know a good place." Adrian piped up. He looked a little subdued, very unlike him. Had something happened?

"Lead us on, then. I'm hungry." Dom said imperiously. I sniggered. What were we going to get up to here?

**A/N I might post again today or tomorrow, because this chapter's so short. I don't know… Anyway, I'm feeling quite happy, as I got to go to an Elliot Minor gig yesterday. It was fun, especially as I spent a large part of it trying (unsuccessfully, I might add) to get my friend to look anywhere but Ed. **

**Also, I'd like to get you to search these people on Google images. They look a little like characters. (I'm not telling you who they are) **

**Lee Min Ho**

**Minho from SHINee**

**Benedict Cumberbatch**

**Michael Sheen **

**Zooey Deschanel **

**So, if you're bored and have nothing to do, look them up. (And yes, I have slight crushes on the first three. What can I say? I think they're hot. I have strange tastes-I don't get my attraction to Benedict Cumberbatch at all.)**

**Shout outs to:**

**CandiGal**

**talkygirl**

**Abbie**

**MaggieChauvin**

**AmeliaBelikov**

**bookluver4ever**

**Ne-Ne (who reviewed every single chapter in one day!)**

**Thanks guys!**

**This is TrulyMadHatter, signing out.**


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N Bonjour, my dears. I am extremely tired because of College work, but I wanted to post. My plot bunny has been up to his tricks again. I'm so sorry it's very short, but I felt the need to leave it at this. And I'm sorry for the long gaps between posts as well. College has taken over my life!**

**Ooh, I saw the new Harry Potter movie and it is awesome! I urge you all to go see it.**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing but my own characters and the plot.**

Adrian gave a small smile, still unlike himself. He seemed like he had a lot on his mind, and I was intrigued. What could it possibly be?

He'd led us to a cosy restaurant right on the edge of the Court compound. It didn't appear to be a place a young, rich Royal would frequent, but then, Adrian didn't appear to be your typical Royal. It was brightly lit, with cheery tablecloths and colourful menus. It was the kind of place I'd have chosen.

We were all sat at three tables, shoved together by V and Alex, who'd decided to see who could be the most childish. Ariana had just gotten impatient with them, and ended up smacking them both up the heads to stop it. We'd all ordered, and were now waiting for the food to arrive, while we all had a drink.

"I still don't get why you couldn't have come with us." Alex muttered, glaring at V, his arm slung around me as I snuggled into it. "I mean, we're your family. You'd think you'd want to come with us, but no…"

V raised one eyebrow, giving a magnificently understated look. "I don't answer to you, Aleksandr." He smirked, leaning back in his chair. "I'm a grown man-" Ariana snorted at that. He carried on, regardless. "And I can do whatever I want." Adrian looked up at this, slightly less downcast, and V held his hand up for a high five. "Am I right, Adrian?"

"Of course." Adrian answered. He leant forward, ever-so casually, and said quietly into my ear. "You do realise we're being followed, right?"

I turned oh-so-slowly in my seat, attempting to look inconspicuous. Sure enough, two burly, scary-looking men sat a few tables away from ours, one cracking his knuckles, the other one staring lazily out the window. I could sense immediately that they were following us, as Adrian had sent. I put my hand to Alex's face, pretending to caress him while I whispered in his ear too.

"We're being followed." His eyes slid to the two men I'd caught sight of, and I nodded minutely.

He put his other arm around me, making it look to all the world as if we were a normal couple, cuddling together romantically. Of course, we weren't, I thought bitterly. "Should we go?" He asked, deferring to me in security matters, as he always did. I bit my lip and looked up at him.

"Maybe we should." I told him apprehensively. He sighed.

"I'm sorry the little get-together's been ruined." He said, giving me a sweet smile. "I was gonna surprise you with something as well…" He sighed again. "It'll have to wait, I guess."

He was so lovely, I felt my heart constrict lightly at the unfairness of it all. "Oh, Alex, it's not your fault. It's just…circumstances. I hate it too. But hey, we don't even know it's us they're following!" It was. My inner sense was a-tingling. Alex looked at me, as if to say 'Who d'you think you're kidding?'. I stood up, and the rest of the group looked at me in surprise.

"Honey, what's going on?" Mum asked, a worried crease forming between her eyebrows. I wished I could never cause that little wrinkle, but with my job it was hard to avoid.

I held my hands out in a placating gesture. "No worries, everyone. Alex just wanted to show me something." Dom gave a ribald laugh, and cocked an eyebrow. He opened his mouth to speak, but I glared him down. The naughty twinkle in his eyes told me I was in for a massive amount of teasing late. Oh joy…

V looked up too, having previously been talking to Ariana, and gave Alex an interesting look, to which Alex shook his head. What an earth was going on?

I started again. "Anyway, so we'll be gone for a bit."

Chloe looked up at me. "Do you want us to go?"

"No, no!" I told her. "You guys stay here. We won't be gone long." I gave them a weak smile and tugged Alex's arm so he'd follow me. We exited the restaurant, walking swiftly onto the pathway next to it. I ducked under the awning of a shop furthest away. I glanced behind us. I cursed.

We were being followed.

**A/N Review? **

**Shout outs to:**

**fshfan70542**

**CandiGal**

**Abbie**

**MaggieChauvin**

**talkygirl**


	13. AN Hiatus

A/N I hate to do this, I really do…but I have left this story so long, I guess it's necessary. I don't know where this story will ever finish. As of now it's on hiatus. I can't bring myself to write anymore, although I did enjoy writing it. I guess I have lost my inspiration for it.

But thank you. Thank you for the people who did read it, who liked it, who reviewed. You all made me really happy. But I just cannot write any more for this story at the moment.

I'm sorry for anyone who wanted me to continue…


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